by Eva Gordon
Besides super senses and strength, being a wolf had its perks. Having a thick fur coat to hike in the snowy mountains, definitely a plus. Not to mention going out for hours without having to find a bathroom to pee. She still needed lessons on how to howl and how to voice the difference between a happy whimper and a sad one, but that would come in time. She loved sharing the wolf world with Lev. No more species barrier to come between them.
Where was Lev? Rachel grabbed her robe, happy to feel the fabric against her fur-less skin. Drawn by the scent of fresh coffee, she dashed to the kitchen. “Good morning.”
He laughed. “Get enough sleep?”
Rachel gazed at the clock. Noon. She frowned. “Um, so why didn’t you wake me up?”
“I thought it best, you rest. We howled until two in the morning.” He handed her a mug of warm coffee and smiled. “Howard wants to see you in a couple hours in the lab. Rylee will meet us there.”
Ugh, more poking and prodding. Her father was disturbed by her transformation into, for all intensive purposes, a new transgenic creature. At first, he had promised a cure, but once she told him she was okay with it, he resigned to the fact his daughter was a werewolf. Not the horror novel mindless rabid creature ripping people apart in a frenzy of murderous rage, but a woman who tamed her beast and could work in both worlds.
Rachel took the cup of brew and inhaled deeply. She sat at the table and sipped. “I’m so hungry, I could eat a horse.”
He lifted a brow. “Wouldn’t you rather have beef?”
“Eating a horse is just a figure of speech. I would never eat a horse. Or hunt and kill for food.” She swallowed. “Or will I have to?”
“Of course, you don’t have to. Many in the pack have never hunted after the change.”
“Oh? I kind of feel like I can. Actually, a guilty desire to.”
Lev dragged breakfast meats, sausages and beef patties, out of the refrigerator then turned to her. “Howard invited us for dinner tonight.”
After learning of her new gift, her father had little to nothing to say to Lev. Only polite bows and one word answers. As much as he accepted her occasional feral state, he blamed Lev. “See, I told you he’s not pissed at you.”
Lev mumbled something in Russian and smirked. “Da, but one does not show their piss at a lethal alpha.”
She laughed. “I would hope not. Then again, who wouldn’t pee in front of you?”
He chuckled. “You don’t.”
Rachel’s smile wavered. “True.”
He sat across from her and met her eyes. “All I care about is that you, my mate, don’t resent me.”
The first week after returning to headquarters, she’d gone through a brief depression. Dr. Mark and Selene said it was natural and that she suffered from a form of morphogenesis, a minor condition of hating either the beast or the human within. But she’d told Lev, she had come to terms with her inner she-wolf. “I’m not blaming you. You never intended to turn me.”
“If I could do it over again, I would have never touched you. I would have protected you and then left you once our enemy pack was destroyed.”
Rachel placed her hand over his. “Lev, I don’t know what my world has in store for me—for us, but know this, my wolf and I love you.”
His demeanor brightened and his eyes gleamed radioactive blue. He stood, drew her up to him and lifted her chin. “I love you, my Goldilocks.”
She smiled. “My Russian bear, just promise to never leave my side.”
“Of that, you can be sure.” He sealed his promise with a warm but possessive kiss.
Rachel growled in satisfaction. His tongue danced over her fangs. Oh, yes, the better to taste you.
Epilogue
Rachel or as others knew her, Dr. Rachel Becker, MD, LD, medical and lycan doctor, sat in her office and looked over the day’s schedule. At last, a human patient. Mia was coming in for a prenatal visit. Until Mia gave birth in six more months, she would stay near the LIA hospital. Dominic, Mia’s alpha mate, would continue his enforcer duties out of the LIA facilities until the baby was born. Once Mia and Dominic arrived, Rachel would focus on being Mia’s full-time physician. She had such few patients as it was so no big deal. It wasn’t everyday a woman carried a half-human half-werewolf baby to term so Rachel would carefully monitor her. At least this gave Rachel plenty of time to learn more about lycan physiology and brush up on OBGYN medicine, since it wasn’t her specialty.
Someone knocked on the door. Lev’s masculine scent tickled her sensitive nose. She opened the door. “Lev.” She practically jumped on him and they kissed for what seemed hours to make up for not seeing eachother for over a week.
He released her and smiled. “Am I disturbing you, Dr. Becker?”
“Only in a good way. Mia should be here in a couple hours.” She gestured. “Come in. I just need to send one email to Darius and then I can go on break for lunch.” Darius would be the other doctor on call for Mia, if she were not around.
“We can go upside for some barbecue.”
“Yum.” She quickly sent the email. “So how did the mission go?” Lev and ten members of Team Greywolf had gone back to the oath breaker’s grave to sift through the ruins of the compound to gather any remains of manuscripts, potions or anti-werewolf weaponry. After she’d been rescued, Team Greywolf had shot several missiles deep through Calopus’ underground warlock lair. All of his surviving pack members had been captured and turned over to the enforcer. All had been given the werewolf lobotomy and released up north. The bones of the oath breakers had been gathered and sealed beneath poured cement. The property now fell under LIA jurisdiction.
“We found one ancient manuscript kept in an iron tube. Lunara and Professor Clayworth plan to study it before returning it to the safe keepings of our archives.”
“Hmm. I still haven’t met James Clayworth.” Besides her father and now Mia, she was anxious to meet human and alpha’s pet, James. Rachel had chosen to stay with Lev and cut all ties with her colleagues and friends and family outside of lycan society. The fact she had to shift every four to seven days, a long time compared to other werewolves, curtailed her need to spend more than a few days in human territory. Lev promised to teach her how to shift without being noticed in human society, but for now she was happy to run with wolves.
“After Mia gives birth, I want to take you on a honeymoon.”
“Somewhere to romp in our wolf forms?” Before Lev left for his mission, she had shifted and they had their first romantic sexual experience as wolves. Surprisingly erotic. She had been happy to learn how to shift on demand. Still, she preferred sex as a human, because of more variety in sexual positions, and so did Lev. “How about the Canadian Rockies?”
“I plan to take you to Paris and then Moscow.”
“Cities?”
“Yes, my Goldilocks. If we need to shift, I know of many secluded forests.”
Rachel stood and wrapped her arms about his neck. “I’d go anywhere with you.”
Stay posted about future books in Eva Gordon’s Team Greywolf series and her other paranormal, fantasy and steampunk books by signing up for her newsletter HERE
In case you haven’t read the Alpha Wolf’s Pet Trilogy, where the werewolf universe and some of the characters in the Team Greywolf series are introduced, you might enjoy them too.
Visit Eva Gordon’s website: http://www.ravenauthor.com to learn more.